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<h1 align="center"><span class="pagetitle">HTML 4.0</span><br>
<font size=2>= <span class="sitetitle">Index DOT Html/Css</span> by <a href="../misc/email.htm">Brian Wilson</a> =</font></h1>

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    <big><b class="mainheading">Statistics</b></big>
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     <dl>
     <dt><b class="subheading">Author:</b> Dave Raggett, Arnaud Le Hors, Ian Jacobs
     <dt><b class="subheading">Specifications:</b>
         <dd>DTDs and Documentation - <a href="http://www.w3.org/TR/html401/">http://www.w3.org/TR/html401/</a>
     <dt><b class="subheading">Timeline:</b>
         <dd>- July, 1996: Cougar DTD published. Considered experimental only.
         <dd>- April, 1997: Cougar development increases at W3C. Still only
             consists of a DTD and an amalgamation of separate draft
             extension proposals.
         <dd>- July, 1997: Name officially changed to HTML 4.0. First official
             public draft released. Full documentation also released.
         <dd>- September, 1997: Second official public draft released.
         <dd>- November, 1997: Becomes W3C proposed recommendation.
         <dd>- December, 1997: Becomes W3C recommendation.
         <dd>- April, 1998: Revised recommendation.
         <dd>- August, 1999: HTML 4.01 becomes W3C proposed recommendation
         <dd>- December, 1999: HTML 4.01 becomes W3C recommendation
     </dl>


<big><b class="mainheading">Early HTML 4.0 - The Cougar DTD</b></big>
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As HTML 3.2 moved toward completion, the next stage of HTML was already on the
horizon. In July 1996 an
<a href="http://www.w3.org/MarkUp/Cougar/HTML.dtd">experimental DTD</a>
(Data Type Definition) for HTML appeared quietly on the W3C web site. Code-named
&quot;Cougar&quot;, it contained all the capabilities of HTML 3.2 in addition to
several new key features. Many capabilities that have been under discussion
and development by the W3C were included in this DTD, such as Style Sheets,
Scripting, Internationalization, the Object element, and extensions to forms and tables.
<br><br>

This experimental version also originally contained a version number (HTML
version 3.5) which was later retracted. Since it was only experimental at
that stage, and subject to frequent change, the <a href="../misc/glossary.htm#erb">ERB</a>
did not want to give official sanction to Cougar by assigning a version number
to it (presumably to avoid the possible version number scheme clash that
occurred with the stillborn HTML 3.0 draft.)
<br><br>

<big><b class="mainheading">The Move To HTML 4.0</b></big>
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In July, 1997 the W3C released the first public draft of HTML 4.0. This new
version of HTML was essentially a more mature and official form of the Cougar
DTD published along with extensive documentation. Along with the original
new features found in Cougar come many long-needed improvements such as
recognition of the syntax for frames that is in common use, and an emphasis
on making the language accessible to people with disabilities. HTML 4.0 is
also the first version to use Unicode as the base character set, allowing
millions of characters to be displayed instead of just a few hundred.
<br><br>

Even though this version of HTML is being developed under the auspices
of the member companies (which include the major browser makers), some
existing functionality found in browsers will never be included in HTML
4.0 or any later version for that matter. The need for partial solutions
to certain problems (such as EMBED, BGSOUND, SPACER and MARQUEE) is
negated with the introduction of new general features like OBJECT and
CSS functionality.
<br><br>

<big><b class="mainheading">Small Steps</b></big>
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HTML 2.0 and 3.2 documented popular current practice, so there was little
need to adapt the capabilities of popular browsers to support them. It has taken 
browsers many years since HTML 4.0 was released for browsers to come close to 
fully implementing all the many nuances and features of the specification. 
<br><br>

In the meantime, the W3C has polished the HTML 4.0 specification and released a
minor update, HTML 4.01, which contains many editorial changes along with
some minor tweaking to the DTDs.
<br><br>

<big><b class="mainheading">Why it is important</b></big>
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HTML 3.2 codified and made official many of the extensions created by
browser vendors at the time, but was still behind in terms of what was
possible in the current browsers of the day. HTML 4.0 extends the
language in officially sanctioned directions and allows for powerful
capabilities never before possible (including some ideas never implemented
from the HTML 3.0 draft.)
<br><br>

The HTML 4.0 version would appear to be the last version of "HTML" (as we know
it) that will be released. Future versions of the language are now based on XML
rather than SGML. In fact, development of an XML replacement for HTML was 
in parallel development with HTML 4.0 for some time; it is known as XHTML 1.0
and is a direct mapping of HTML 4.0 to the XML universe.
<br><br>

There will always be HTML documents on the web, and HTML 4.0 goes the farthest
of any official specification towards codifying many of the browser-extensions
that have made the web what it is today (for better or worse.) Browsers will
continue to change over time, but it is a good bet that they will all be
supporting HTML 4.0 in one form or another for quite some time.
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